Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Both The Republican Party And Israel Face Similar Problems

It occurred to me after reading various analyses about the Republican Party in the aftermath of the presidential election, that there seem to be some obvious similarities between the way the Republican Party and Israel are viewed.

See what you think.

Both Israel (vs Palestinian terrorists) and Republicans (vs Democrats) are painted as villains by their opponents and enemies.

Attacks on the Republicans are way over the top -- like Israel, they too are called Nazis.

Both Republicans and Israel face an antagonistic media that focuses on -- or creates -- negative stories about them, while glossing over negative stories about the Democrats and Palestinian Arabs.

Neither the Republicans nor Israel seem able to muster a consistent, coherent message about who they are and what they stand for.

Aside from having a coherent message, both Republicans and Israel have the key problem of getting their message out there for people to hear -- and believe.

Buckley dealt with this decades ago by distancing the conservative movement from the extreme right.
Today, the issue appears to be the left-wing Republicans who are accused of not adhering to conservative philosophy.

Meanwhile, Israel has people like Beinart, who wants to encourage American Jews to boycott Israel.

Both the Republicans and Israel have had their message co-opted by the other side:

Post-1967 Israel has lost the underdog status, despite the countries aligned against them and their willingness to not only talk about destroying Israel, but also acting upon it.

On the Republican side -- the first Black congressmen and senators were consistently Republicans for decades.